


The Great Beyond

by khudgens91



Category: Sanctuary - Fandom
Genre: F/F, Space Pirates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-27
Updated: 2015-12-27
Packaged: 2018-05-09 18:57:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5551544
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/khudgens91/pseuds/khudgens91
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Captain Magnus rescues a young girl from the slave trade.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Elysandra](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elysandra/gifts).



> It's a day late, but Merry Christmas to Anna! Sorry I didn't come up with anything new, but hope you enjoy re-reading this one.

Magnus breathed deep, enjoying the fresh night air. They hadn't been planet side in weeks. The smell of dirt and the slight dampness to the air were a welcome change to the sterile recycled air aboard her ship. The hustle and bustle a comforting sound after the quiet of space. 

Walking over to a nearby vendor, she grabbed a bright red apple, dropping a few coins on the counter in payment. Her teeth sunk into the fruit's flesh with a satisfying crunch and she had to work not to let out an obscene little moan when the juices hit her tongue. Stale ship rations didn't compare to fresh fruit. It was costly nowadays, but she allowed herself the luxury every once in awhile. 

Magnus happily munched on her apple as she walked further from the market area and into the shadier part of town. Her men had headed straight for the bar or, in some cases, the brothel. She could understand their enthusiasm, but she always enjoyed visiting the local markets, actually exploring whatever port city they had docked at. She usually ended up at the bar with the rest of them, but she liked the few hours of alone time. 

The sun had long since set, the seedier characters of the city starting to emerge. Cat calls drifted out at her from the back alleys, something Magnus was used to by now. She ignored them, not fazed by them at all. Maybe a younger version of herself would have been uncomfortable with the attention, but not anymore. 

Stopping outside the bar, she cocked her head toward the alley. She could have sworn she'd heard something. Noise filtered out from inside, making it hard for her to hear anything else. Backing away from the warm glow of the bar, Magnus stepped quietly into the alley. She couldn't see all the way to the end, but she could hear a scuffling sound. 

"Get off me!" A voice hissed. "You're hurting me! Stop!"

"Shut up!" A deeper harsher voice slurred. 

It didn't take much imagination to deduce what was going on. Without much thought, Magnus drew the stunner that was strapped to her thigh. She tried to stay as quiet as possible, hoping to get the upper hand through surprise. 

Her eyes quickly adjusted to the lower lighting. Up ahead she could see a large man knelt down on the dirty alley floor on his hands and knees. A smaller body was pinned beneath him, twisting and thrashing in a vain attempt to throw him off. 

"Stupid bitch, stay still!" The man grunted. 

Neither noticed her approach, giving her the opportunity to step right up behind them. The safety on her weapon clicked off and a low whine emanated as the stunner charged. The man froze, stiffening when he felt the end of her gun pressed against the back of his head. 

"Get off her," Magnus growled lowly.

"Just walk away," the man replied, sneer evident in his voice even though she couldn't see his face. 

"Get up, slowly," she insisted. 

He did as told, rising to his feet carefully. He was several inches taller than her, his hulking frame towering over the young woman still laying on the dirty floor. He held a small knife in his right hand, blood glistening off its edges. 

She expected the attack, prepared when he whirled around and took a swing at her with the bloody weapon. She evaded him easily, hitting him in the face with the butt of her gun. There was a satisfying crunch of bone and the man howled in pain. 

"You bitch!" He bellowed, holding his bleeding nose. 

"Leave before I do more permanent damage," she warned him.

"Like hell I will! I paid fer 'er! She's my property now!" 

Magnus reached in her pocket, pulling out a few gold coins and tossing them at him. He caught them easily. 

"I'm sure that more than covers what you paid for her."

The man looked from Magnus to the girl to the coins in his hand. He looked like he was going to argue again, but she fired her weapon a few feet to his right and that helped make up his mind. 

"Whatever, she was too much trouble anyways," he grumbled before sulking off. 

She watched him leave, making sure he was gone before turning her attention to the girl. Her dress was torn and bloody, her tan skin bleeding where the man had cut her in his haste to remove her clothing. She was groggy, probably drugged in preparation for an easy take. Nevertheless she'd put up a good fight and Magnus had to admire her for it. The girl had spirit and seemed to be a feisty thing despite her small stature. 

"You're safe now," Magnus assured her when the young woman tried to escape her hands. 

She struggled weakly against her attempts to look at her wounds. Realizing it was futile, she sighed. Scooping the girl up, she rose smoothly. She was no more than skin and bones, weighing practically nothing in her arms. 

She'd take the girl back to her ship, clean her up and dress her wounds. She'd need to make it clear to her men that the young exotic looking woman was off limits. Once she woke up they could discuss her future.


	2. Chapter 2

After making sure the girl was seen to and safe, Magnus headed straight for the bridge. She needed to find out what she'd just gotten herself into. 

Pulling up the interstellar archives on the master computer, Helen typed in a search for legal slaves. A registry of slaves popped up and her heart sank when she was able to find the girl among its roster. If she was registered there was no getting around the law. 

She had few choices. She could sell her to someone else, under god knows what conditions. There was always the galactic federation, but likely she'd end up some high up official's play thing, if she got lucky. Or she could keep her. Ensure that she was well cared for and protected. Then when her mandatory 10 years of service were up she could choose her own destiny. She could stay on as a paid member of the crew or go her separate way. 

Plus, a selfish part of Helen thought the company would be rather nice. Even though she wasn't entirely alone, the crew of the Ashley hardly filled her need for human contact. Most of them were about as dumb as they were ugly. Space was a hard life, add on top of that abnormal hunting and one couldn't be too picky as to their crew.

Her staff back at the Sanctuary were a completely different story. They were more like family. But nowadays she spent more time in space then planet side. 

Resigned to the fact that she was now a slave owner, Helen logged off the system. She had never believed in slavery, but now that she'd accidentally gotten herself one she'd at least be a kind master. She'd have to keep a close eye on her to make sure none of the men on board messed with her. 

For now she'd go check on her, see if she'd woken up yet. They were headed back to the Sanctuary and Helen planned to eventually give the girl the choice to stay on board or remain planet side once they docked. In the mean time she would need to help out around the ship. Everyone on board needed to pull their weight. Slave or no, the girl was now part of the crew, even if it was only temporary.


	3. Chapter 3

The last thing she remembered was the smell of apples, which was unusual because she couldn't remember the last time she'd had the sweet fruit. Her family had been too poor to afford such luxuries. Now, as she struggled to clear her head of the fog clouding it, she realized that the last twenty-four hours hadn't been just a dream. They were in fact quite real. She resisted the urge to curl into herself at the realization. 

She took stock of her surroundings. Judging by the sleek metal walls and sparse furnishings, she guessed she was on some kind of ship. Slave ship perhaps or a low end transport vessel. The sound of a latch being released signaled the arrival of company. Quickly she lay back down, hoping to appear still asleep. 

"You will tell the crew that she is to be left alone. If any one of them so much as lays a finger on her I'll have their heads," a pleasantly accented female voice instructed. 

"Yes Captain, of course," a man replied. 

"That will be all for now. Dismissed." 

A heavy door squeaked closed and the latch fell back into place with a loud click. She could hear the captain move about the room, but didn't dare open her eyes to take a peak. It was surprising that the captain of the ship would be a woman. It wasn't unheard of, but rare enough to not be the norm either. The woman must be fierce and tough as nails to command a whole crew. Space wasn't for the faint of heart. 

"I know you're awake. You can stop pretending," the captain said conversationally. 

She didn't move, continuing with the charade. The captain sighed and moved closer to the bed in which she was lying. It was actually a rather nice bed. Big enough to comfortably hold two people and softer than she would have expected ship beds to be. She felt the edge dip as the captain sat down, felt the warmth that radiated off the body now so close to her's. 

"What's your name girl?" The captain demanded softly. 

Peaking out from under her lashes she was surprised to find a rather attractive woman staring down at her. The captain looked at her sternly, clearly expecting an answer. Finally she opened her eyes all the way and sat up slightly. 

"Kate," she replied quietly. 

"Well Kate, welcome aboard the Ashley." 

"What are you going to do with me?" Kate demanded hotly, sounding a lot tougher than she actually felt. 

The captain actually laughed at her. 

"Feisty," she commented. "I paid for you, I intend to get my money's worth." 

Kate gaped at her. Did she want her to...

"Not sex, girl," the captain assured, probably reading the look of disbelief on her face. 

The man had bought her in the auction earlier that day. She had officially been his property. The woman must have bought her off him. The question was why? If she didn't want sex, what could she want with a personal slave? 

"Tell me, how did you come to be in that man's possession?"

"My father sold me off for a few gold coins." 

"I see," the captain said coldly. 

"Whatda you need with a personal slave anyhow?"

"You'll be my cabin boy, or girl in this case," the captain told her. 

"What's that mean?" 

"You'll clean my quarter's, fetch my meals, run my errands, and anything else I may ask of you," she explained. 

Kate stared at her wearily.

"You'll be treated fairly so long as you do as your told," she assured. 

If she were honest with herself, she'd been living like a slave her whole life. She'd served her father and her brothers ever since their mother died. Eventually they just couldn't afford the extra mouth to feed, not when she wasn't at least helping with the labor. 

She'd known for months her father wanted to sell her off. She'd tried to eat less, hoping to make him decide she wasn't too expensive to keep. She'd offered to help in the fields, but her father was old fashioned and believed it wasn't a woman's place to be out with the men. She'd considered running away, but she didn't have anywhere to go. So she'd ended up in the slave auction. At least she'd earned her family a few gold coins, Kate thought bitterly. 

"You'll sleep in here with me," the captain continued. 

Kate looked around the compartment, not seeing any other sleeping units. 

"There's only the one bed," she said, noticing Kate's search. "It's plenty big for the both of us."

"What should I call you?" 

"The name's Captain Magnus," she replied. "You can call me either Captain or just Magnus, which ever you prefer." 

Kate nodded. 

"You'll start your duties in the morning. For now get some rest."

Magnus rose from the bed, crossing the room towards the door. Hand on the latch the captain gave her one last glance over her shoulder before slipping out the door. Kate lie back down, staring up at the ceiling in silent contemplation. 

She hated the idea of being someone's slave, but it wasn't like she had much choice. It could be a lot worse. That man had bought her with the intention of making her his personal whore. When the captain said she didn't expect sexual favors Kate believed her. 

She'd always wanted to go into space. This wasn't how she'd imagined it, but she was determined to make the most out of the situation. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. 

Several hours later she felt the captain's warm body slip into the bed. In her sleepy state Kate had to remind herself why she shouldn't snuggle up to the soft body beside her.


	4. Chapter 4

After 3 weeks Kate felt like she had fallen into a routine. She'd rise early to fetch the captain's breakfast, bringing it back to their quarters each morning. She usually ate her own breakfast in the ship's kitchen, the mushy rations wolfed down quickly to prevent gagging. 

Ship food was one of the hardest adjustments for her. It wasn't that she was used to high quality food, her family had been extremely poor, but the freeze dried mush they had as rations were terrible. 

Lunch and dinner were usually more palatable. Sandwiches or soup, whatever the dispenser delivered that day. It was always a gabble if you'd get something good. But breakfast was never good. 

The captain didn't want her constantly underfoot, so after breakfast they usually went their separate ways. At first Kate had just wandered the ship, exploring. After about a week Magnus had assigned her duties. Apparently everyone on the ship had tasks they needed to preform daily, including Kate. 

She'd been assigned what she liked to call monster maintenance. The Ashley was more than a standard transport vessel. It had been specially modified, which would have cost a fortune, to house and transport special passengers. Anything from feathers to scales to slime, they had it on board or were at least capable of having it. 

Magnus had explained that they searched for rare beings which she called Abnormals. They went all over the galaxy. But instead of capturing them for amusement or as trophies they helped the creatures. Some were too dangerous to be left loose, others sought refuse with her, and some were rescued from persecution or other poor circumstances. When they had a full ship load they would return to Magnus's home world (because she was just that rich to have her own personal planet) where they were transferred to her permanent facilities. 

Her crew was a motley bunch. According to the captain her planet side staff was top quality, but her ship crew was mostly people tough enough to handle space life and the dangers of monster hunting. 

Between the captain and Kate, they were the only women on board. Magnus had given explicit orders that none of the men were to touch Kate. None of them dared try anything with the captain herself, but in their eyes Kate must have been easy prey. Under Magnus's protection she'd had no problems with them so far, but she'd caught several of them leering at her. 

Kate was happy to spend her days in the lower levels of the ship, away from the rest of the crew. It was hard work. Each habitat needed cleaning and they could be as diverse as a desert set up to a tropical forest. She wasn't sure how Magnus did it, but each enclosure was specifically geared towards its inhabitants. The feeding schedules varied, depending on the creature, and Kate had to keep detailed records of her work. 

By the end of the day she was usually too exhausted to do much more than scrub the grime off herself, bring their dinner back to their room, and fall into bed. The captain always looked at her with an amused expression when Kate would moan as soon as her head hit the pillow. 

When things were slow on monster maintenance she would clean the captain's quarters and whatever other part of the ship needed it. Today it had been the engine room. She was covered head to toe in grease, vaguely worried she'd never get the black residue off her skin. 

She'd worked late, wanting to finish her cleaning so that she wouldn't need to pick it up the next day. One day of grease was more than enough for her. 

Kate's muscles were already becoming sore from the vigorous scrubbing and odd angles she'd had to contort herself into. She was looking forward to a hot shower. The showers were usually empty, at least they had been every time she'd used them so far. Therefore it was a bit of a shock to walk in and notice she wasn't alone. 

Magnus was in the far stall, the divide coming up only to just below her shoulders making it easy to see her. Kate blushed awkwardly. She usually just stripped and got in her stall, but with another person in the room she wouldn't have much privacy. She could always get in and strip her clothes once inside the stall, but she thought that would draw even more attention to the situation. 

Trying not to seem too nervous, Kate placed her clean clothes in a cubby and began pulling off the greasy material sticking to her. She kept her back to Magnus until she had to turn around to get in the stall. Once inside she pressed the control buttons that would regulate the temperature and pressure and sighed with relief when the hot steam hit her. 

"Rough day?" Magnus ventured, glancing at her out of the corner of her eye. 

"Um, yeah," Kate stammered, reaching for a bar of soap. 

"The engine room hasn't had a good cleaning in ages, looks like it was especially greasy for you," she commented. 

Kate wasn't really sure what to say. They still didn't talk much. She did her work, but mostly kept to herself. She felt awkward around the captain, the older woman intimidating her with her beauty and commanding personality. It wasn't that she was scared of Magnus, she just got tongue tied around her. 

"I think I'm wearing half the grease I managed to get off," Kate tried to joke, forcing herself to act casual. 

"Grease looks good on you," Magnus threw back with a grin and a wink. 

Kate just stared at her for a moment, taken aback by the blatant flirting. What was the captain doing? She'd gone back to washing, acting as though nothing out if the ordinary had just occurred. Kate watched her for a minute before she realized she was staring and turned her attention back to scrubbing off the grease spots. 

They showered in silence after that. Kate had managed to get the black spots that had seeped through her clothing mostly off. She was so intent on a particularly stubborn spot that Kate had almost forgotten Magnus was there. Until the captain turned her water off and stepped out. 

Startled, she looked up only to catch an eye full of naked Magnus, little rivulets of water running down the lush curves of her body. Kate's eyes were wide as she watched the captain drying her hair with a towel. Apparently she had no problems with nudity considering she made no move to cover herself up as she troweled the wet strands of her dark hair. 

Kate's mouth had gone dry watching her, a new wetness that had nothing to do with her shower pooled between her thighs. Magnus, sensing eyes on her, glanced over her shoulder to catch Kate's eye. She felt the blush creep across her cheeks and quickly turned into the spray of water, away from the tempting picture Magnus created. 

She studiously kept her back towards the captain, no matter how much she wanted to take another peak. Lost in her thoughts, Kate noticeably jumped when Magnus was suddenly in the stall next to her's. 

She was fully clothes now, her hair wet and curling softly around her face. The divide did little to separate them, especially with the way Magnus leaned against it. 

"You missed a few spots on your back," she pointed out. 

"Um, thanks," Kate mumbled. 

"Need help with them?" She offered, voice slightly huskier than before. 

"N-no thank you." 

Magnus studied her for a few long moments before shrugging one shoulder and exiting the stall. 

"Suit yourself," she said as she passed by. "I'll see you in the room then." 

The captain left the shower room and Kate let out a shaky breath, bracing her hands against the wall. She felt all tingly everywhere. Had that really just happened? She wasn't sure how to react to that. Deciding to ignore it for now, she finished her shower quickly and dressed in the clean clothes she'd brought. She had a feeling it was going to be a long night.


End file.
